We love pulled pork, yet I had never made it until this weekend. I really can't even tell you why it took me this long to put it on the menu plan.
Last Christmas I was given The Pioneer Woman's cook book. It's a great book to not only grab recipes from, but also an enjoyment to read through. In fact, I spent most of my time reading it until now, and finally started diving into making some of the recipes. This being one of them.
Aside from having to turn the meat every hour (which can be a tiny bit annoying) this pulled pork recipe is extremely easy! The flavor is oh.so.wonderful as well. We'll be making this over and over and over and over (do I sound like a 60's rock song?).
The Pioneer Woman pegs this as her Spicy Shredded Pork. I didn't think it was necessarily spicy (and ever since my pregnancy, I've been super sensitive to spicy food.) Plus, I'm more familiar with the term "pulled pork" rather than "shredded", although it's the same thing.
You can use this dish in many ways. This time, we made sandwiches one day and threw them in tortillas another. Ben and I both ate more than a generous portion each time, if that tells you anything. 😉
Pulled Pork
One 5 to 7-pound pork shoulder roast (or butt roast as it's called in my grocery store)
1 onion, quartered
1 Tbs chili powder
½ cup brown sugar
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 to 2 Tbs salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
3 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs white wine vinegar
2 cups water
Preheat oven to 300˚F.
Rinse the pork and pat dry. Pulse the onion, chili powder, brown sugar, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, olive oil, and vinegar in a food processor until thoroughly combined.
Place the roast into a very large roasting pan. Pour the marinade over the pork and, using your hands, rub into every nook and cranny. Flip the pork and repeat. Add 2 cups water to the pan. Cover tightly with foil and roast for 6 to 7 hours, flipping once every hour.
Once the meat is fork tender, use a large spoon to scoop out most of the juices and reserve in a heat-proof bowl. (I do this because the juice tends to thicken/solidify too much during this next step.) Increase the oven temperature to 400˚F and roast the pork uncovered and skin side up for 20 minutes, or until the skin is crispy. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes.
Use two forks to pull apart the meat. Place on a large platter and pour reserved juice over top. Let juice sink into the shredded meat and set to enhance flavor and increase tenderness.
Serve as you wish.
Source: Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks (Book and Blog)
Tara says
I made this last week. It was so good! We ate it with tortillas, salad, and some pinto beans that I added a can of Rotel to. It was a great meal!
Sophia says
I just became a big fan of pulled pork about a year ago. Now I love collecting pulled pork recipes. Thanks for posting this! I made Crockpot Old South Pulled Pork - https://www.recipe4living.com/recipes/crockpot_old_south_pulled_pork_on_a_bun.htm on a Bun - recently and it was delicious! Keep up the great work here!
claire says
looks amazing!
Year on the Grill says
Hey, just saw this on Foodgawker... great job. Just this morning, i did a review of 9 recipes I made from my leftover pulled pork...
Got any of yours left? Take a look
https://yearonthegrill.blogspot.com/2010/09/just-sandwich-what-to-do-with-gallon-of.html
April says
You could also use your slow cooker to do this-it would save a bundle in energy costs-especially since you are cooking it so long in the oven. It's something like 25 cent an hour for an oven but only 2 cents an hour for a crockpot. I've made pulled pork a lot in the crock and it turns out fab!
Kari says
And as far as shredding it? I put small amounts (while hot) in my kitchenaid mixer with paddle attachment. Turn on for 30-45 seconds....and Voila!...perfect pulled pork!
Sue Gladd says
Anything that resembles bbq is the best. Right now I'm grilling/smoking (250 degrees) four seasoned/marinated pork tenderloins. When Safeway puts them on a 2 for 1 sale, I buy two, and they are yummy! I seasoned two of them, and the other two from Safeway are peppercorn/garlic. We have four sportsmen (inc. one of their wives) besides us for 4 days, so I'm using up food pretty fast.